Chins were so close to the floor after this one that it was safe to assume opinion was divided between those who think Stoke are going down and those who think they are already down.

There is still life left in the old dog, yet, but boy how they could have done with a wag in the tail at the end of Saturday’s stalemate.

They should have won a game they could have lost, while a point on home soil from arguably their easiest remaining fixture does little to raise evidently flagging spirits among the faithful.

It might actually have been better for Stoke fans had the game just petered out as a draw, but that dramatic finale raised expectations and merely twisted the knife even deeper.

A missed penalty and a clearance off the line, all in the dying embers of the game, added up to a frantically unsuccessful climax that could leave more than just Charlie Adam counting the cost if Stoke go down by a couple of points.

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Adam deserves credit for wanting to take a last-minute penalty to win such a tense occasion – and deserves some slack for missing after the pressure was unforgivably intensified by Jese throwing a wobbly because he couldn’t take the penalty he himself had won.

Yes, the adrenalin was pumping through Jese’s veins, not least after a long absence because of domestic anguish, but even in the heat of the moment he should still have remembered there is no i in team.

There have been no evident egos since Paul Lambert arrived a month ago and this is no time for them to start poisoning the atmosphere of a dressing room now clinging precariously to all available hope.

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To be fair, the toys thrown from Jese’s pram had barely landed by the time the true drama began as Adam not only saw his penalty saved, but then failed to knock in the rebound amid the entanglement of what was adjudged to have been an outstanding goal-saving tackle, but what might actually have been a much more legitimate foul than the one on Jese.

Still the drama continued, however, as Adam’s subsequent corner forced a low save at the near post before Kurt Zouma’s goalbound follow up crashed into an obdurate defender.

And still it wasn’t over as seconds later Mame Diouf’s glancing header from another right-wing corner would have sailed in had Anthony Knockaert, not your usual goal saver, headed off the line when, according to the technology, around 75 per cent of the ball was over it.

Lewis Dunk challenges Charlie Adam in the rebound from a penalty as Stoke City draw with Brighton. (Image: Leanne Bagnall)

Unlucky Stoke? Yes, but lucky Stoke had they won.

Even a late Stoke winner, whatever the rejoicing that would have followed in Stoke’s biggest home crowd for three decades, couldn’t have completely pulled the wool over our eyes.

Brighton were the better side for large swathes of the afternoon as they played with a freedom, confidence and menace absent from Stoke’s more laboured, nervous endeavours in front of a home crowd whose worthy support was inspired far more by loyalty than belief.

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Not least after Jose Izquierdo, having already forced a brilliant tip over, played a couple of one-twos just after the half-hour to confound ball-watching defenders before bending his cute shot around Jack Butland for 0-1.

Badou Ndiaye, already impressing on his home debut after back-tracking superbly to regain possession with a sliding challenge, quickly threatened an equaliser by volleying Moritz Bauer’s right-wing cross narrowly wide of the Boothen End goal.

He threw his head to the heavens and then whirled his arms to try and rouse fans behind the goal. This guy has spirit, the sort that sustains some semblance of hope, and he certainly escapes more criticism than most right now.

Mame Diouf celebrates after thinking he has scored with a header against Brighton at the bet365 Stadium. (Image: Mark Runnacles)

How sad to witness Darren Fletcher’s contrasting fortunes nearby, meanwhile, as his every gathering of possession appeared to be accompanied by either a sharp intake of breath or an audible groan.

His selection was a surprise, his half-time removal a relief, but the veteran midfielder, whatever his trials and tribulations, deserves enormous credit for never once hiding and shirking responsibility.

The manager’s substitutions were all aimed at trying to save and then win a game in which Stoke’s salvation looked increasingly like emanating from a huge stroke of luck or a moment of brilliance.

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Thankfully, it was the latter, as Xherdan Shaqiri gathered the ball just right of goal and inevitably teed up his trusty left foot for a low shot destined to squeeze between the keeper and his right-hand post with more than 20 minutes remaining.

Brighton, despite ensuring Butland remained the busier of the two goalkeepers, were suddenly looking vulnerable, Stoke almost rampant, as the fist-pumping atmosphere harassed the ear drums somewhere between a boxing ring and a bear pit.

Sadly, and very possibly fatally in the final outcome on May 13, we were robbed of the tsunami of noise and emotion that would have greeted a late winner from Adam or Diouf.